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We moved back home to Detroit late last year, and one of the most exciting things for us was the fact that we were going to be living in a historic Victorian home built in 1895. A four-bedroom, 2-story house, with gorgeous brick exterior and hardwood floors throughout. After living in our tiny Venice bungalow for nearly 6 years, it feels surreal to have so much space.

The one concern I had with so much space though, was WiFi – and more specifically, how on earth were we going to get our WiFi to be available throughout the entire house? With a traditional router back in our Venice home, it was nearly impossible to have more than one device be connected to WiFi at any given time, which as you can imagine, became quite troublesome.

Enter eero. I’m not exaggerating when I say that their smart WiFi system has completely changed our lives and the way we live in our home. It all comes down to the technology that’s housed in these aesthetically beautiful, simple pods.

Eero utilizes TrueMesh™ technology, allowing WiFi hops between eeros to travel down hallways or go around walls. Unlike other WiFi systems that only allow for one hop in any direction, eero allows for more hops with less speed degradation. How cool is that?

Now when Chris watches cycling recaps from races like Le Tour de France via YouTube on our smartTV downstairs, I can be upstairs in my studio working from the computer, prepping new items for our vintage shop, all while streaming music. We no longer have to bicker at one another to “get off the WiFi” – it’s truly glorious!

The design of the eero is elegant and unassuming, so it fits in perfectly with our home decor. We currently have an eero in my studio room, which is an on-suite from our bedroom. Another one is in Chris’ music studio which is also upstairs but on the opposite side of the house down a long hallway. Together, they provide incredible coverage for our entire second floor, which includes our guest room.

Downstairs, we have an eero Beacon in the kitchen, which despite being only half the size of the original eero, it actually performs 30% better since it’s a full-fledged access point. It also acts as a handy LED nightlight, perfect for late night snack rendezvous with the fridge. Our final eero is in our DJ/ record room, which is adjacent to our dining room and living rooms.

Having a reliable WiFi system that allows us to focus on life and the things we love has been liberating. Days of worrying about buffering, dead zones, spotty connections, etc. are gone forever. Now that’s the key to a happy life!

Want reliable WiFi coverage in your own home? Get free overnight shipping on any eero WiFi system with code LALOVETTA at checkout when you purchase from eero.com – trust me, it’ll be THE BEST purchase you’ve made all year!

This post was sponsored by eero. All ideas + opinions expressed are my own as reliable Wi-Fi coverage at home is so essential to living a happy life!

As of this summer, we have officially lived in our little Venice Bungalow rental for 6 years. SIX YEARS. Just thinking about it completely boggles my mind, since for most of my adult life I’ve basically been a nomad, living in apartment after apartment for no more than 2 years at a time. With that thought in mind, I decided back in May that it was time to upgrade our bedroom because let’s be real – sleeping on a mattress + box spring on the floor wasn’t cutting it anymore!

CREATE A FOCAL POINT: Since our headboard isn’t very prominent, we used this large vintage rug hook wall art to create a focal point in the bedroom, and accented it with smaller pieces of art like this wall hanging from Maptote. Even everyday accessories such as hats can become decor when you display them in an artful way!

THINK SMALL: Making over any room of a house comes with it’s challenges, and making over a tiny bedroom with an attached bathroom is even more of a challenge since the bed can only face maybe 2 ways. The first step for us was to update our bed situation. Because our bedroom is so small – around 100 square feet – having a queen sized mattress without a frame was kind of a burden. I know it’s only a few inches, but trust me, those few inches make a huge difference. We decided to downgrade on size, but upgrade in quality by going with a new full size mattress from Helix Sleep for customized comfort, and ASKVOLL bed frame from Ikea because we liked the minimal design, and also because it provides space for storage underneath. Plus, our cats now have a place to hide when the vacuum comes out to play.

COMFORT FIRST: When it came time to dress our new bed, I was looking for something simple + soft that would keep us cool throughout the night. Christopher tends to sweat when he sleeps, so getting a new comforter was totally out of the question. Instead, I pulled my favorite vintage Turkish blanket out of our Tawas Trading Co. inventory and paired it with the matte Sateen Venice Set from Parachute Home. I love how comfortable they are together, and especially how luxe the sateen sheets feel, while also being more wrinkle resistant than most bedding. I’ve literally never slept better!

MULTI-FUNCTIONAL: I love mid century modern slat benches for their versatility. So naturally when I spotted this smaller than usual one at The Venice Flea Market last month, I immediately knew it would be prefect for our bedroom. The missing piece of the puzzle! Most days we use it as a side table, but occasionally we also use it for seating. Another great flea market find is the accordion hanger we have above the bench. They come in all shapes and sizes, and are ideal for literally anything.

LET THERE BE LIGHT: As in any small space, great lighting is such a necessity. We have amazing natural light that floods in during the day, but once the sun goes down, our bedroom tends to become a dark dungeon. When I discovered C by GE, I knew they’d be the ideal light bulbs for our bedroom. Their bluetooth LED bulbs allow you to customize light levels at various times of the day, to your preference. Plus, it’s so nice being able to turn lights on/off remotely via my phone, from bed or even from another room in the house. It’s the best!

The only thing we’re still trying to figure out is storage. This is a challenge throughout in our entire bungalow, but especially our bedroom since we only have an itty bitty closet. What are some of your home design/decor challenges, and how did you overcome them?

What’s so great about a cat? Purina Pro Plan Cat explores this question through a series of cat portraits shot by photographer Jessica Trinh, and our cat Victor was one of the lucky felines chosen to be a part of the #mygreatcat campaign. A few weeks ago the Purina team and Jessica came to our bungalow for a little photo session and Q+A about our love of cats, adoption and what makes Victor so great! Out of so many great qualities, Victor’s intuition, curiosity, and sensory nature stood out to the team and jotted down a few things Christopher had to say about Victor:

“I just think cats are so unique. They’re like little people that pick up qualities from their owners. He gets his social butterfly-ness from Eileen. But he can be a little bossy sometimes, too. He keeps everyone in line, us and the dog included. If our dog Rusty gets out of hand, Victor will bop him on the head. He just gives him a look that he knows. He likes to prance around and thinks he’s very refined and sophisticated. He is also a master escape artist.”

Last weekend in Union Square, Purina teamed up with the folks from @cats_of_instagram for a day long event featuring a pop-up gallery which showcased the 10 cats around Los Angeles as well as highlights selected from Instagram that fans shared through the hashtag #mygreatcat. Oh, and now through the end of August if you share a photo of your cat with #mygreatcat on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram, Purina will donate 1 lb. of food (up to 50,000 lbs.) to one of many cat rescues around the country. Now that’s what I call great!

What a fun couple of weeks it’s been! I recently began working with Jen Crosby of Bungalow 9 Jewelry on digital branding and social media for her jewelry line along with product photography. Collaborating with other entrepreneurs is one of the best things about being freelance, especially when they create such beautiful things.

We had a little get away to Ojai again – just because (why not, right?). I treated myself to the Gravel & Gold boob top I’ve been eyeing ever since I lost my favorite tunic of for like ever, and also scored some great vintage finds for Tawas Trading Co.

Follow me here on Instagram to get a glimpse into my daily adventures!

Can you believe 2014 is right around the bend? I can hardly believe it, but another year in sunny Southern California has been written in the books and we’re about to embark on a new adventure. If you’re a busy bee like me, you barely have time to comprehend that 2013 is ending, let alone plan a New Year’s Eve celebration. Right? Right. Well, Luckily there are a couple of easy things you can do to make even the smallest and unplanned of get togethers feel extra special.

DRINKS // Let’s start with what matters most. I have to admit – I’ve had my fair share of cocktails this holiday season, starting with Thanksgiving. It’s hard not to get sucked into indulging during this time of year, especially with all the parties and get-togethers going on (woohoo!). Luckily I recently discovered the wonder that is the kombucha cocktail (first time was at Sage in Culver City) which makes having an extra drink or two, a bit more guilt-free!

For those of you who aren’t so familiar with komucha, it’s an ancient probiotic tea that is fermented tea drink, naturally rich in friendly probiotics and high in antioxidants + nutrients. My favorite of all time is the Pink Lady Apple from local LA company, Healthade! Anyway, kombucha has been used in countless cultures to help improve health, in particular to boost immunity and energy, balance metabolism, and aid in digestion to boot. So naturally, pairing it with a spirit makes drinking healthy, right?

My friend Melanie and I decided to take our favorite Healthade Kombucha flavors and turn them into the perfect sipables for bringing in the New Year. We start off with a light and refreshing number called “The Petticoat” that I discovered over on Bliss Tree. We changed it up a little bit by using honey syrup and raw honeycomb to garnish (along with a sprig of rosemary) which proved to be quite tasty!

1. Add a handful of ice to a cocktail shaker. Add in 1.5 oz of St. Germain, then 2 oz of Original Flavor Healthade Kombucha. Pour out a teaspoon of honey syrup and drizzle into shaker. Place top on and shake for 15 seconds.

2. Place a few ice cubes into a small mason jar, then pour. Garnish with a slice of raw honeycomb through a toothpick and rosemary.